Rosalie's Loss
by Breadcrumb
Summary: Edward and his family are away on a hunting trip. Only Rosalie and Emmett have stayed behind, keeping Bella company for one day as she waits to welcome Edward back. Then Bella falls asleep outside, and when she wakes up she enters the house to find that R
1. Prologue

**Author's Note: My second fanfic! Posting these really makes me nervous, but I was feeling guilty because I wasn't bothering writing anything when I could have done something. Anyway, this is the prologue. I know, it's really short. Haven't written much past this. I'm not really good at keeping a decent plot and I tend to go off-topic and get all rambly, but I figured I have to be able to say I've tried to write a story. So...here's the beginning. Review and tell me what you think of it so far! (By the way, the characters may tend to get a bid out of character as the story progresses. That's what I'm anticipating, at least. But we'll see.)  
Disclamer: Bella and Rosalie and all the Twilight characters belong to Stephenie Meyer. I thought up the plot, though. **

PROLOGUE

_It's too dark. Far, far too dark._

That was the first thought that sprang to mind as I stared up at the classy, three-storey home that the Cullens lived in. The windows were pitch black.  
The image was eerily fitting given the dark, looming shapes of the trees around us, the inky black sky and the unique family that inhabited the house.

I was worried, though. It was never completely dark. You could always see at least one light turned on somewhere. Carlisle and Esme would be watching TV, or Edward would be playing the piano in the living room, or maybe you would be able to see the light on in Rosalie and Emmett's room if you went around to the back. But it was never completely dark, although they didn't really need the light to help them see. In fact, usually the house was dazzlingly bright and alive with the sounds of vampiric laughter.

I had arrived at Edward's house early that morning. Edward was coming back tomorrow from a hunting trip with the rest of his family, and I wanted to be here when he got back.Rosalie and Emmett had stayed behind, so Emmett had come to pick me up earlier on.

I had spent most of the day laying outside on the cool grass reading, and they basically let me be.The dark house was probably nothing. Maybe Rosalie and Emmett were doing something private in their room, or had turned off the lights to watch TV, or some other trivial matter. I was always overreacting.

My eyes instinctively darted to and fro as I nervously clomped up the front steps. I had never felt so exposed, so noisy. It was terrifying, but also annoying when I thought about how paranoid I was being. I willed myself to stop and slowly stepped into the house, calmly closing the door behind me. There. That wasn't so hard.

Sighing, I reached over to flick on the light before I started to get jittery again.

"Don't on it." A pained voice whispered from out of the darkness.

I very nearly jumped out of my skin. My eyes widened with terror and I could feel my heart accelerating wildly as I looked around the room. My thoughts were flicking wildly to James, Phoenix and the crushing waters surging around me...

"Who is that?" I trembled.

"It's just me. R-rosalie."

I felt myself relax. It was Rosalie. Just Rosalie. And as much as she disliked me, I knew she would never harm me in any way. Edward meant too much to her for that. And we were never hostile or aggressive, although we did ignore each other.

"Oh, sorry. I fell asleep outside..." I trailed off, listening to her whimper in the darkness. I strained my ears, trying to listen. Was Rosalie- stubborn, beautiful Rosalie- was she actually _sobbing_?

"Rosalie?" I asked, shocked and fearful. But a different part of me reminded myself that she couldn't trulybe crying. As much as she sobbed, tears would never fall from her face.

"J-just don't on the light, Bella. Just don't." Shesobbed softly.

I couldn't make her out in the darkness, but her voice seemed to be originating from behind the piano.My hand instinctively wentfor the light switch so I could see.

"DON'T ON IT!" She said harshly. Shocked from her outburst, I lost my balance and wrapped my arms around myself.

Her fear was rubbing off on me and I found myself sweating. "Rosalie, you're- you're really scaring me. What's wrong? Just let me turn on the light-" I said, my voice hoarse.

I was nervous with a kind of sick anticipation. What would I find if I turned it on? I couldn't even begin to imagine all the horrific things that couldbe there if a vampire had lost control...But I had to turn on the light. It was shocking at how much I had relied on my ability to see in my life, how much easier it had made things. And now, terrified at this vulnerable and frightened Rosalie, I was blind.

I couldn't stand the darkness anymore. I had to see. No matter how awful, I needed to see.

Before she could say anything, I reached up and flicked the switch, blinking stars from my eyes as the room burst into color.


	2. Hair

**Author's Note: Okay, I never realized how many words is actually needed to get a decent length for a chapter. It's rather daunting. But, anyway, here's the first real chapter. I don't know if anybody guessed what the problem actually was, but it took me half a day to think of something that could go wrong that I was interested in.**

**  
Disclamer: Bella and Rosalie and all the Twilight characters belong to Stephenie Meyer.**

_"...The tall one was statuesque. She had a beautiful figure, the kind you saw on the cover of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue, the kind that made every girl around her take a hit on her self-esteem just by being in the same room. **Her hair was golden, gently waving to the middle of her back..." -**Stephenie Meyer, Twilight (pg. 18)_

My eyes darted around the room in panic, half expecting a couple of carnivorous vampires to lunge out at me.Perhaps a couple of human corpses would be laid neatly on the steps, staining the floor with the sickening blood. Rosalie would lose control, and that would be the end of that. But there was nothing. The piano, the stairs, the floor, the curtains- everything was in it's regular place. More significantly, everything was regular. Except for Rosalie, of course. I could see her back, huddled behind the piano like I'd expected. A strange thought struck me.

She hadn't attempted to stop me.

As easily as she could have, Rosalie had not simply come over to turnthe light back off and dart back to her spot in the darkness. Heaven knows she could do it a blink of an eye. She could probably even have taken one more milisecond to permanently tie me up to the banisters. But she hadn't. Which was extremely strange. If it had been Edward, I'd probably be uncapable of moving right now.

I peered at her, shocked to see her quivering like a little girl. "Rosalie? I don't understand. What's wrong?" I shuffled over hesitantly, and she flinched, but didn't move.

"Please- please don't come over here." She replied in a weak, nearly inaudible whisper. It was true though; there didn't appear to be anything wrong. I suppose I'd expected something gruesome, something terrifying. But everything was normal. Something glinted on the floor besides Rosalie as it was struck with rays of golden light. Frowning, I went around to the other side of the piano.

And that's when I saw it. My untrustworthy human reactions took me a few seconds to process everything, but when it did, the images it was being shown started linking up quicker than I could imagine. I just gaped, horrified, as Rosalie stared up at me with her frustrated, tearless eyes.

"Do you understand now, Bella?" She whispered, her voice cracking. She buried her face in her slender hands. "What am I going to do?"

It was hair.

The glinting on the floor, the golden strands clenched in her fists- it was her hair; the magical, fairy-like stuff that I had always admired so much. Strands clung to her clothing, surrounding her on the floor like a halo of light. And I remembered what Edward had told me about vampires. When they were changed, their body stayed in the same state that it was...for eternity. Eternity. I looked at the scant inch of hacked-off golden hair left on Rosalie's head, horrified, and I realized what a huge impact this had on her.

"Oh, God, Rosalie..." I cried, flinging my arms around her in comfort. Her voice choked, and she wrapped her cool arms around me as well, squeezing me so hard I could barely breathe.

"What am I going to do?" She whispered, sounding so pained I felt tears well up in my eyes. They spilled over, running down my face and onto her shoulder, and she stiffened. Rosalie immediately pushed me away, embarrassed and angry as she fully realized who I was. It hurt me to think thather apparent dislike for me ran so deep that she wouldn't even let me comfort her.

She sniffed haughtily, turning her face away so that it was illuminated by the soft light. I couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy and remorse. She was still so beautiful, even without her rapunzel-like hair.

"What happened?" I asked quietly, curious. What _had _happened? Never in a million years would Rosalie do that to herself. And I meant that quiet literally. Rosalie's dark gold eyes only flashed to mine and away, but not before I had seen the scared, confused expression still lingering in her flawless features. Why wouldn't she tell me? How could she _not _tell me? I forced myself to keep quiet, however. I couldn't even begin to imagine what she was going through. Appearance was everything to her, and she...she was going to live forever, frozen in that state. Her hair would never grow back.

"Where's Emmett?" I said finally, breaking the silence with a change of topic.

"He should be...back...soon. He went out for a quick hunt. He was getting too thirsty." She replied coldly, staring down at the locks of hair strewn around her. I nodded.

The tension in the air was thickening by the second, and I was too scared to ask another question. Rosalie and I were like oil and water. We didn't mix at all. If we were chemicals in a lab it would surely be in smithereens by now.

I was suddenly excruciatingly impatient for Emmett to come home. Rosalie was staring off into the distance frostily, her body rigid, but it was obvious that she was still upset. She needed comfort, consolation, explanations...and I definitely wasn't the one to give it. She needed Emmett. We both needed him. Rosalie and I were so tense sooner or later we would probably explode.

I glanced at my watch, letting myself get sucked in by the darkness outside as I prayed for Emmett to hurry up. I shifted my foot, and Rosalie immediately shifted hers away from mine. I sighed.

It was going to be a very long wait.

* * *

I'm not sure when exactly Emmett returned home.

We had sat there for ages. Whether it was thirty minutes or thirty hours I'm uncertain, but my whole body was numb and my back was stiff. Naturally, Rosalie hadn't moved an inch, not bothered at all by her uncomfortable position. I wanted to comfort her again, desperate to make some progress in my relationship with her, but it was hopeless. She didin't even acknowledge my presence after that one question. I found myself wishing fiercely that Edward and the others would come home, and soon.

But it was quiet clear when he did return. Rosalie bolted upright, her lip quivering, panicking as she desperately swept aside the pile of golden hair. I felt sorry for her and I could practically see what she was thinking. She was worried that Emmett wouldn't like the way she looked anymore without her hair, or would leave her for someone else. Or worse yet, would be angry with her. Something along those lines. The Rosalie I had first met was an entirely different person from the timid vampire I saw now, and I sympathized for her. A furious Emmett was something I did not want to see, and I knew all too well how it felt to worry about your true love leaving you.

Headlights illuminated outside the house and I briefly glimpsed a large, jeep-shaped shadow pass by the window. Rosalie stood up fluidly, taking a step forward and back again, as if unsure. Then with a sudden movement and a shake of the head she was gone, up the stairs and out of sight.

Which left only me to explain the situation to Emmett, a situation that I did not understand myself. I wrung my hands nervously, cursing myself for being so afraid.

"Hey, Bella! Sorry I left, but we have to take our precautions, as you well know. We have school tomorrow. Where's Rosalie?"

The door swung open and Emmett appeared, casually dressed and cheerful as ever. His smile slipped a fraction and he frowned as he saw me cuddled up by the piano. He would catch on soon. Vampires were so devastatingly quick sometimes.

I saw his mouth drop open in a mixture of horror, shock and disbelief as he saw the hair. His eyes slowly shifted to me, narrowing. I gulped audibly, opening my mouth to speak.

"What...happened?" He said slowly, his deep voice booming out menacingly. I flinched, taking a step back.

"I don't know," I whispered in a hoarse voice, "I came back and Rosalie-"

He was already gone. I shivered, rubbing my arms as a strong gust of wind slammed into the front door. There was a storm coming on.

"What's going on?" I muttered to myself, climbing onto the couch and resting my head on the arm rest. "Let's see what's happened so far..."

Rosalie's hair was down to an inch and she wouldn't tell me anything. Emmett was suspicious of me. I was cold. My whole body was sore and there was a storm brewing outside. And most importantly, Edward wasn't here.

I couldn't help but feel sorry for myself.


	3. Suspicions

**Author's Note: Sorry, I know it's been like two weeks since I've updated, but we've been having exams in school and then I had some uploading problems and it's just been really busy. I'll try to get the next one up sooner, I know it's really annoying. Especially since this chapter is sort of a filler chapter to bridge the time gap between Chapter 1 and Chapter 3. Anyway, it's short, but I'll try to make the second one longer...at least two-three thousand words, I hope. (By the way, I know it's sort of veering from the summary a bit, but I am planning on doing the whole Bella-Rosalie relationship thing)**

**Disclamer: Bella and Rosalie and all the Twilight characters and settings belong to Stephenie Meyer. I thought up the plot, though. **

* * *

That night of waiting and pity and not understanding would serve to be the beginning of a painful episode in our lives. Well, more specifically, the lives of the Cullen family. And I knew for a fact that it was (at least in part) due to me, although the Cullens would never dream of telling me so. Not now, anyway. 

My suspicions were strengthened by a conversation that I had overheard the morning after Rosalie's loss, when Alice and Edward thought I was still asleep.

"_-we tell Bella?" Alice's voice drifted through the door. I wouldn't have been able to hear them if they hadn't been so angry with each other._

_"Alice, don't you dare. I know her, she'll be horrified, she'll think it's-" _

_"But they'll be coming back, it was a warning..." I strained my ears to hear more, "-something...danger...James…"_

_My hands grew clammy at the thought of James. What were they talking about?_

_"Forget it, Alice. We'll manage somehow...it will...it will be fine..." _

_"No, it won't. Not this tim-"_

_I jerked back from the door as I sensed them approach, rubbing my eyes and trying to look as if I'd just woken up. Edward wrapped his arms around me soothingly, but I could sense the stiffness in his body. _

_"How's Rosalie doing?" I whispered. _

_"Bella, do you...do you want to see Rosalie? I think she's feeling a bit better now, but it would be better if you didn't say anything..." Alice asked quietly. I considered it, then shook my head. _

_"It's okay. I- It's not me she needs right now. She needs to be alone."_

But I wish I had gone into Rosalie's room that day, because I never saw Rosalie again.

And I'm actually upset about it. No matter how much she disliked me, she was still Edward's sister. She was still a vampire, same as Alice and everybody else. She was still important to the Cullen family. But after Edward and the rest of the family returned that next morning and I had explained the situation to them, there was a lot of chaos and confusion and fear. I could sense the Cullens panicking as they conversed with each other, purposely blocking me out of the conversation with their amazingly fast way of talking.

Even Edward, my precious Edward, was worried and nervous. Rosalie had refused to see any of her vampire siblings until Carlisle informed her that they were coming in anyway, and they all bashed through the barricaded door to talk to her. I had stayed behind, keeping my distance, still as shocked as the rest of them.

But the next night, I suddenly woke up in the middle of a nightmare to find Edward scooping me in his arms and rushing out the door and back to my house. He was so upset I don't think he even noticed me wake up, but I looked over his shoulder and back at the house just in time to catch a glimpse of several dark shapes fly out of the air, towards the house ... and the day after that Edward told me that Rosalie had gone.

Edward, naturally, only told me a scant bit of information. He became increasingly agitated and protective as the days passed by, and even when I did something as simple as take out the trash I had the rather comforting suspicion that he was somewhere around the house, watching me. He simply refused to let me be alone at any given time, and even when he went hunting Alice was there instead, attaching herself to me.

And every time that I managed to ask him to tell me where Rosalie had gone, he simply replied with a hoarse, "Trust me, Bella. It will only upset you. You don't need to know." Which was extremely annoying, and admittedly sent chills down my back.

Because I did need to know. Did Edward, who knew me so well, believe that I could stand not knowing what was going on after I had seen Rosalie sobbing tearlessly on the floor that night? After Rosalie had disappeared? Sometimes I wanted to know and understand so badly that I was obsessed by it. Like how I had been obsessed with Edward and they mystery he had presented me when I first met him…

Life pretty much reverted back to normal after the first few months, although the Cullens were strangely nervous, jumping every time I tapped them on the shoulder and constantly looking around the room. I tried to make myself forget about what had happened, and strangely enough it became a sort of dream to me. Something that had happened that could not have been real. Rosalie was no longer real. After all, haven't I always been talented at repressing awful things?

But sometimes, for a small moment, I remember and sit down to wonder what had really happened. But only for a small moment. Just a minute. Or two.

What was one of the most precious things that Rosalie had? Her beauty. It was one of her strongest attributes, I knew that for a fact. And for some strange reason, she had lost her hair. Beauty was not based on hair, but to Rosalie it played an awfully large part. And that loss had crushed her. But, in truth, it's just like they say…

Everyone has a weakness. All you have to do is find it.

We had no idea back then of how awfully some of our weaknesses would be exposed. And as for Rosalie, well…

Rosalie was only the beginning.

* * *


End file.
